Community Recording Sessions

Page address: http://www.mnsu.edu/voices/interviewday.html

Voices from the Valley makes it easy to record someone you care about.* Select someone whose story you want to record--a grandparent, a mentor, an old friend--you name it. Then follow the steps below to create a keepsake that will last for generations.

Step one: Make a Reservation...

Dates for upcoming Community Recording Sessions are posted on our website and announced on local radio. Sessions are held at KMSU, Minnesota State's campus radio station. Contact us via email or call Dave Engen at (507)-389-5537 to schedule your one hour session.

KMSU is located in the Alumni Foundation Building (AF on the campus map); You should be able to park in Lot 19 right next to the station.

Step two: Prepare for the Session...

We ask that you come to the session with at least 10--15 questions written out. Questions should generate the sharing of stories, memories, and feelings. The national organization, StoryCorps, offers a number of excellent potential questions.

The StoryCorps Question Generator (below) will help you create questions and select a focus for your interview. StoryCorps will even send your questions via an email you can print out and bring to your session. Don't worry that this is called a "StoryCorps interview"--the questions created with the help of the link below will work great for your session with us.

It is best if you first ask any basic biography sorts of questions (e.g., "How old are you?" "Where did you grow up?" "What did you do for a living?") and then move to more open-ended questions (e.g., "What is one of your favorite memories of childhood?" or "What was it like being in the army?")

Some interviews will be broad (talking about an entire life) and some interviews will be more specific (talking about the relationship between a father and daughter, for example)--It's up to you.

Step three: Come On in to the Recording Session...

Bring your partner and your questions to KMSU Radio on the campus of Minnesota State, Mankato. Once you arrive, things will go like this:

A trained facilitator will give you a ten minute introduction to the recording equipment (it's easy--we promise)

You'll record a 40 minute interview/conversation with your partner

After the interview, we'll make two cd copies of the interview--one for you and one for Voices from the Valley

We'll take pictures of both people involved in the interview

*Community Recording Sessions and our description of them are influenced and inspired by the work of StoryCorps. We are NOT formally affiliated with StoryCorps.